Low mood, no motivation

Five people said long stretches without ejaculating helped: one felt amazing after 20 days, another ejaculated after three weeks, slept normally and had roughly 90% of symptoms gone, and others go one or two months at a time, ejaculating only a handful of times a year so they can function at work. One also mentioned withdrawal effects along the way, then feeling great near the end.

Six people discussed this strict abstinence and five found it helpful: one felt well after two months, another found their mind much clearer, one kept it up for ten months and felt like a better person, and another felt it helped hold an underlying mood problem in check. But wet dreams increased the longer they abstained, one had odd symptoms during a restart, and another said masturbating makes their mind go crazy, so they can't.

Four people said a cold shower right after orgasm helped: one said it gets rid of most symptoms, another that it eases the rush, another that cold showers improve depression, and one combined Klonopin with a long cold shower.

Four people said these supplements helped their mood. One took 5000 IU of vitamin D daily and felt steadier, though other POIS symptoms changed little; another felt high-dose omega-3 fish oil plus vitamin D eased severe depression; a third said depression and brain fog eased somewhat after restarting vitamin D; and one added that a B complex can help too. Personal reports only — check with a doctor before taking supplements.

A few people said niacin helped: one recommended it, with vitamin E and anti-inflammatory painkillers, as a first line of defence, and another said it eased severe depression. Others had side effects — chest tightness for one, headaches from a B-complex containing niacin for another. Personal reports only — check with a doctor before taking supplements.

Two people said 5-HTP helped their mood: one took 100 mg daily for a month and felt much less depressed and anxious; another listed it with niacinamide and tryptophan for depression but doesn't stack them, over serotonin syndrome worries. A third said it once left them more depressed and irritable. Personal reports — talk to a doctor before taking supplements.

Two people said about three weeks with no orgasm or ejaculation, wet dreams included, made them feel much better: one had full mental clarity and the confidence to hold eye contact, and felt blissful, while another felt quite well and happy. Personal reports — they don't show abstinence is necessary.

Several different drugs are mixed here. One person said that since starting memantine their symptoms no longer show up and they can enjoy sex again; another said low-dose amitriptyline (10 mg) every night for two months somewhat improved their sleep, mood, pain and brain fog. A low-dose naltrexone (LDN) routine is also mentioned, but no one directly reported how it worked. These are prescription drugs and personal reports — always ask a doctor first.

Two people said giving up porn helped: one found their sex drive faded over time, and that even masturbating without porn felt far less bad than after two hours of porn; the other quit porn and masturbation altogether and said their chronic depression went away, with no POIS for about two months.

Two people said propranolol helped: one said it helped from the start but that diet did the heavy lifting, and another took 10 mg a day and said it took about a week to fully kick in. Neither named a specific symptom. Personal reports only — propranolol is a prescription drug, so talk to a doctor first.

Two people said fluoxetine (Prozac) helped: one felt about 70% better, and another, whose symptoms came back after stopping antibiotics, felt about 80% better and normal a day later. Personal reports only — fluoxetine is a prescription drug, so talk to a doctor first.

One person with depressive symptoms said taking Wellbutrin (bupropion), Effexor (venlafaxine) and Abilify (aripiprazole) every day helped a lot; they barely feel orgasm now and are only about 50% better, but at least it is steady. Another said their current mix of Effexor, vigorous exercise and testosterone replacement (TRT) helps to some degree. Personal reports about prescription drugs — talk to a doctor before using medication.

Two people said zinc helped: one takes zinc or ZMA after orgasm to keep their mood up, and the other said zinc completely fixed their POIS symptoms. Neither gave amounts. Personal reports only — check with a doctor before taking supplements.

One person said their mood can dip on the second day after orgasm, and that taking more CBD (hemp) brings them back to normal.

One person said that after sunbathing regularly for weeks or months, their depression eased a lot, and eyesight problems and inflammatory skin reactions lessened. No details on how they sunbathed.

One person said that after a month of taking 100 mg of 5-HTP daily, going up to 200–300 mg when needed, their symptoms eased a lot and they felt less depressed and anxious. Personal report only — check with a doctor before taking supplements.

One person said they're on an anti-candida diet and healing slowly; when they ate sugars or simple carbs they used to get sick, depressed and extremely exhausted.

One person said that about 3 months ago they were prescribed bupropion 200 mg a day, reportedly for depression and anxiety, and things have gotten a little better. Personal report only; bupropion is a prescription drug, so talk to a doctor rather than starting or stopping it on your own.

One person said folinic acid (leucovorin), taken as prescribed by a clinical geneticist, gave the best improvement in mood they'd had. Dose and duration weren't given. Personal report only — check with a doctor before trying medication or supplements.

One person said memantine helped them and that they still take it every now and then, mainly because it gives them more sex drive, a better mood and a better sense of wellbeing. No dose was given. Personal report — it is a prescription drug, so talk to a doctor first.

One person said the best thing for them was cutting out porn, masturbation and orgasm for 3–6 months and then returning slowly. They felt everyone should do it, but didn't say what exactly improved.

One person said that after a little over a week without ejaculating they could feel their old self coming back. Another version described at least a week with no ejaculation of any kind, wet dreams included, to get a POIS-free stretch.

One person said they're on an anti-candida diet and slowly healing. When they ate sugars or simple carbs they used to feel sick, depressed and extremely exhausted; avoiding them, they have been gradually improving.

One person suggested adding an antihistamine and found it helpful, but didn't say which one or give a dose or timing, which is much vaguer than other reports that name specific drugs. Personal report only — talk to a doctor before using medication.